The General Assembly finds that:
(1)(i) many residents of the State live in dwellings that do not conform to building, health, safety, fire, occupancy, or other codes and standards applicable to housing;(ii) many communities or political subdivisions in the State do not have a minimum livability code; and(iii) these conditions impede the development and maintenance of healthy, safe, and viable communities;(2) private sector financing is often unavailable for rehabilitation because: (i) owner-occupants of housing in need of rehabilitation often have low incomes; and(ii) nonoccupant owners often incur high risks in owning and managing the housing;(3) rehabilitating suitable housing: (i) increases the economic life of the housing;(ii) is often more economical and less disruptive than replacing the housing and relocating its occupants;(iii) can better promote community development when it is done through organized housing rehabilitation programs;(iv) is essential for sound community development; and(v) can be helped by rehabilitating commercial buildings serving communities where housing rehabilitation is desirable;(4) it is a proper public purpose for which public money may be spent and property acquired to:(i) rehabilitate housing;(ii) develop healthful, safe, and viable communities;(iii) rehabilitate commercial buildings to help rehabilitate and develop housing; and(iv) provide healthful and safe housing for migratory workers to maintain and expand the agricultural activities that are dependent on the labor of these workers; and(5) it is a proper public purpose for which public money may be spent to:(i) improve, modify, and add to housing to increase the supply of special housing for special populations, such as elderly households, individuals with disabilities, and other disadvantaged residents of the State;(ii) prevent lead poisoning by modifying older housing to provide a lead-safe environment, as lead paint in older housing is a major source of lead poisoning in children;(iii) provide adequate indoor plumbing, water supply, and sewage disposal systems for dwellings; and(iv) reduce or eliminate radon and asbestos, which are major detriments to the health and safety of residents, on a pilot program basis.Amended by 2014 Md. Laws, Ch. 229,Sec. 2, eff. 7/1/2014.